The internationally renowned San Francisco Heart & Vascular Institute at Seton Medical Center has pioneered advances in cardiovascular care for decades. Patients with heart disease are offered the full spectrum of advanced diagnostic and treatment services, including minimally invasive interventions and a comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation program that quickly returns patients to an active lifestyle.

It’s more than your heart . . . it’s your life. The renowned team of cardiologists and cardiovascular surgeons within the San Francisco Heart & Vascular Institute is recognized for advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of heart and vascular diseases and for management of high-risk patients. The team has treated patients from more than 45 countries around the world as well as patients locally and throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Treatment options range from medication regimens and pacemaker implantation to advanced heart surgeries and procedures.

Comprehensive diagnosis of heart and vascular disease is conducted with state-of-the-art equipment at Seton Medical Center, including blood testing, nuclear medicine studies, MRI, CT and PET, and echocardiography studies (echocardiography is a non-invasive test that uses sound waves to show the size and shape of the heart, how well the chambers and valves are working and how well blood is flowing to those areas).

Additional testing and treatment is performed in a dedicated electrophysiology, vascular and endovascular laboratory, including procedures to evaluate and detect blood clots in the arteries and veins and to use mapping and ablation technologies to diagnose and treat abnormal electrical activities in the heart.

Seton Medical Center’s three state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization laboratories use digital imaging systems to diagnose and treat clogged arteries and other life-threatening conditions. In addition, advanced equipment is used to create a 3-D image of the heart to accurately treat abnormal electrical activities. Testing and treatment procedures performed in these labs include angiography, balloon angioplasty, rotational atherectomy, stenting, and ultrasound therapies.

Staffed by specially trained and certified nursing professionals, the hospital’s 14-bed Coronary Care Unit (CCU) is especially designed with advanced monitoring and testing equipment for the care of patients following a heart attack, major cardiac surgery, or interventional cardiology procedures.

The nationally certified Cardiac Rehabilitation Program at Seton is designed to restore cardiac patients to optimal function for activities of daily living, recreation and employment. The program focuses on individuals with a history of angina, myocardial infarction (heart attack), stent, angioplasty or heart surgery.

The program provides:

a comprehensive, individualized assessment

monitored and supervised exercise training

education in cardiac risk factors and stress management

nutrition and medication counseling

individual and group support

The early outpatient program (Phase II) encompasses telemetry EKG monitoring, blood pressure and symptom monitoring, and incremental increases in exercise levels. The long-term cardiac fitness program (Phase III) is designed to improve cardiac fitness, continued structured exercise, and support to maintain motivation and adherence to lifestyle changes and risk factor modification habits.

Visit the Physician Search for board-certified cardiovascular specialists at Seton Medical Center who focus on cardiology, interventional cardiology, and cardiac and vascular surgery.

Education & Support

Educational classes, wellness programs and support groups are available to patients with heart disease and their families. For information, times, dates and location visit: